Sunday, January 15, 2017

Firstly, we need to talk about the sport of
weightlifting. Bumper plates would
probably not have been invented if not for athletes dropping huge amounts of
weight from overhead. Weightlifting has
existed as an Olympic sport since 1896.
The first Olympic Weightlifting events featured both one-handed and
two-handed lifts, although the one-handed lifts were later phased out during
modern weightlifting competition.

Current weightlifting competitions are comprised
of three attempts at the Snatch, followed by three attempts at the Clean and
Jerk. The weightlifter’s heaviest
successful Snatch is combined with his/her heaviest successful Clean and Jerk
to create the Total. Naturally, the
Total determines the overall result of the competition within a body weight
category.

While other weight sports test limit strength, Olympic Weightlifting tests aspects of human
ballistic limits (explosive strength).
The Olympic lifts are executed with greater speed and more range of motion than other strength movements performed with a barbell.

Rubber bumper plates were reportedly not used in
Olympic Weightlifting competition until the 1960’s, but did not become a competition standard until the early 1970’s. As records escalated, quite naturally the number of plates loaded on the bar also increased. Early model rubber bumper plates were extremely thick to the extent there was no more room to add weights to the sleeve of the barbell. Making the loadable sleeves of
the barbell longer to accommodate the weight was not an
option as it displaced the bumper plate weight too far from the weightlifter’s
body. This would have ultimately made the lifts more difficult than they inherently are. As a solution,
the steel disc was added into competition bumper plates. This steel disc center adds weight to the plate without
impacting the desired qualities of the rubber surrounding the disc.

The colors of the Olympic Bumper weight plates, as well as Powerlifting plates, are regulated by international sports
organizations that govern these respective sports The apparent reasoning is to create uniformity of all equipment for identification purposes at a glance.

The official color standards are as follows: Red
for 25kg plates, blue for 20kg plates, yellow for 15kg plates, and green for
10kg plates. There is also a similar color code for color bumper plates in pound increments: Red for 55lb, blue for 45lb,
yellow for 35lb, and green for 25lb. Lastly,
there are “off brand” low-quality weight plate sets that may use red for 45lb,
blue for 35lb, and green for 25lb (or other variations deviant to officially recognized
color schemes).

Colored training bumper plates should provide a
lower cost alternative and possibly greater durability to competition bumper
plates. Training bumper plates should
have qualities that are more beneficial for everyday training for the following
reasons:

·Note: there are two properties of competition
bumper plates that make them superior to training bumper plates for actual
competition use. These same factors are
also responsible for the considerably higher price of competition bumper
plates.

a)Accuracy of plate weight: Vulcan Absolute Competition Bumper Plates are
accurate to their designated weight variances within 10 grams. The accuracy of weight requires calibration
which increases the cost of the plates.

b)Lower plate profile: Thinner plates contribute to bringing the bar
load more proximal to the weightlifter’s body.
The lifter can apply greater control and force to the load if it is
closer to his/her body. The steel disc
makes the low profile possible, but also increases the cost of the plate. Steel is inherently more expensive than
rubber and requires more costly processing and machining to be used in any
quality product.

The minimal variance in weight and better
weight placement is certainly important for the actual competition or for
attempting personal record lifts in training, but it could be questionable how
that plays out in the day-to-day “grind” of training repetition after
repetition. The Vulcan Kilogram Training
Bumper Plates are accurate within +/-1% of the designated mass, which is only
0.5% over the International Weightlifting Federation standard for competition
plates. The Vulcan Absolute Competition
Plates are +/- 10 grams which far surpasses the IWF standard for IWF
certified weight plate tolerances. "The tolerance on the nominal weight of each component weighing more than
5 kg must be + 0.1% and - 0.05%. On parts weighing 5 kg or less, the
tolerance must be +10 grams and - 0 grams per part."

·We talk about excessive noise in a training
environment but sometimes our cries fall on deaf ears (forgive the pun). It is not cool losing your hearing before you are even 50 years old. If your work environment exposed
you to the amount of noise a weightlifting coach endures on a daily basis, you
would be justified requesting earplugs from your employer. As it is, most weightlifting coaches are
self-employed so take it upon yourself to treat your most important employee
right!

·Competition bumper plates should not bounce high when
dropped on the platform. It is a
wasteful expenditure of energy and effort catching or deflecting nearly
waist-high barbell bounces. That, and it
is simply dangerous. Many weightlifting
gyms we visit are 2,000 ft2 or less with very little room between
lifting platforms. Lifters should be
able to concentrate on their own lifts in their own area without worrying about
the interference of a bar loaded with 10kg plates skipping across their
platform from another lifter’s area.
Responsibly equipped gyms provide ideal training environments.

3.Competition Bumper Plates just look cool. They are simply the higher-quality, better
performing option. Few would disagree
with this. For high-level weightlifting
gyms and athletic training facilities, the competition bumper plate is highly
favored over the training weight plate.
If you have the funds, the people, and the facility for it then yes,
yes, yes, equip every platform and power rack with competition plates and
professional bearing bars! If you are
starting a gym or weightlifting club as a business, perhaps you want to save some money for
marketing and unforeseen expenses as your business grows and opt for more training bumper plates in your gym. As your business grows you can always add a few sets of competition bumper plates for testing and in-house competitions.

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Vulcan Strength Training Systems is a supplier of strength and conditioning
equipment for CrossFit, Olympic Weightlifting, High School and College
athletic training, Fire, police and Military training centers